time within hours to reject a House-passed funding stopgap shortly before a midnight deadline to avoid a government shutdown.

Senators defeated the House proposal along party lines, 54-46 There were no defections. The measure would have delayed the individual mandate, a core piece of the Affordable Care Act, and prevented congressional lawmakers and staff from receiving federal subsidies when they enter healthcare exchanges.

For all the talk of the Republicans supposedly being hurt by this shut down, the Democrats probably just flushed multiple seats down the drain with this vote. Democrats in the Senate who are up for reelection are now going to have to tell the voters in their state how great Obamacare is while admitting that they don’t want it themselves. If the Republican Party is smart, it can make this into a central issue of the 2014 campaign.

* Republicans are against Obamacare while Democrats are for it.

* Republicans tried to delay the law to give them more time to work out the problems, but Democrats said the law is flawless now and didn’t need to wait.

* Republicans tried to get rid of the busines- killing medical device tax, but Democrats voted to keep it in place.

* Republicans think Congress should live under the same laws as everyone else while Democrats think Congress should be exempt from the laws they pass for everyone else.

So far, the Republican Party hasn’t taken any damage, while the Democrats have taken votes that will cost them seats next year. So, Ted Cruz’s strategy is working out great so far. Now, we get to see if Boehner can capitalize on all the mistakes the Democrats are making or whether he’s just not up to the job of being Speaker of the House.